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Ethnomedical documentation of selected Philippine ethnolinguistic groups: the Busaos Kankana-ey people of Barangay Catengan, Besao, Mountain Province A collaborative project of Philippine Institute of Traditional and Alternative Health Care, Department of Health, Sta Cruz, Manila University of the Philippines Manila, Ermita, Manila 2000 August Page 1 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT We wish to thank the Provincial Health Office of Mountain Province for the assistance and suggestions given during the initial phase of the study, and Dr Penelope Domogo for the suggestions and referrals on the study sites. We also thank the people of Besao especially Hon Johnson N Bantog for the permission to conduct the study in his locality, and Ms Joyce Callisen for the guidance and help in the coordination in the study site. And lastly, we would like to give our deepest thanks to the people of Brgy Catengan, Brgy Captain Dondie Babake for allowing us to conduct our study in their community, the family of Mrs Vergie Sagampod for the warm acceptance and accommodation given the researcher during the study period, and the healers, mothers, youth members and children for the information that they shared. Page 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Executive summary Background of the study Objectives Methodology Review of literature Results Recommendations References Appendices Page 3 Ethnomedical documentation of selected Philippine ethnolinguistic groups: the Busaos Kankana-ey people of Besao, Mountain Province EXECUTIVE SUMMARY An ethnomedical documentation of the Busaos people in Mountain Province was conducted in March to July 2000. The five-month study focused on the indigenous healers present in the community. The study included the documentation of the health perceptions, beliefs and practices of the Busaos, including the ethnopharmacological knowledge of the community. The ethnohistorical background of the tribe was also included in the study. A total of 57 informants were interviewed for the data collection. A total of 17 medicinal plants were documented. Documentation of these plants included the local names, the therapeutic indications, the parts used, the preparation, and the direction for use. KEY WORDS Ethnopharmacology Ethnolinguistic Igorot Kankana-ey Busaos Mountain Province Cordillera BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY Page 4 The Philippines is home to more than 13 million indigenous peoples belonging to more than 120 distinct ethnolinguistic groups. Most of the indigenous Filipinos live in the mountains or their fringes or near the sea. They are found throughout the archipelago. The Busaos tribe is one of them. Each ethnolinguistic group has a tradition of practices, including those, which refer to healing. The people have used plants and other natural products from the forest and the sea to treat their sick. Very few studies have been done on indigenous Philippine medicine. We wish to address the need to document and hopefully, preserve and propagate the beneficial healing traditions of our indigenous peoples. We also wish to search for potentially useful therapeutic agents among the ethnomedical practices before the said healing traditions are overcome by the twin threats of forest and sea degradation and onslaught of lowland mainstream culture. We hope that with the information that we shall gather from the research, we shall be able to help in the advocacy for the rights of the indigenous peoples and for the preservation of their ancestral homelands as well as for the preservation of biodiversity of the country’s forest and seas. OBJECTIVES The study aimed to achieve the following: 1. To document the plants and other natural products being used as medicinal agents by the Busaos; Page 5 2. To document their beliefs and practices on health, disease and healing; 3. To prepare culturally acceptable basic health education messages /materials for the Busaos; and 4. To help in the advocacy to preserve the indigenous people’s ancestral homelands. METHODOLOGY The research process was divided into three phases: the preparatory (which included site selection, the PIC processing and review of related literature), the actual data collection and the post research phases. We ensured the active participation of concerned agencies and organizations in the completion of this project. Preparation phase A directory of contacts from both private and government organizations as well as individuals was prepared prior to site selection. We solicited suggestions and recommendations on the possible study site based on the following criteria: 1. The community has reputation for indigenous medical /healing practices, ie, presence of at least 3 actively practicing indigenous healers; 2. Community is living at or near the forest; 3. Community is known to have continually practiced its indigenous traditions; 4. Community has stable peace and order situation; and 5. Community can be accessed using available means of transportation within a reasonable period of time Page 6 We validated the information regarding the suggested study sites from the identified contacts. Barangay Catengan of Besao, Mountain Province passed the criteria and was thus selected as the site study. The Prior Informed Consent from the community and local government unit was accomplished next. A permit for the collection of some sample materials was also secured. In the process, a courtesy visit with the provincial and local chief executives regarding the study was done. A non- formal community orientation was also conducted to clarify the objectives of the study. Identification of primary key informants for the study was also tackled. A month was devoted to literature search in different libraries in Metro Manila and the provinces. This gave the researcher a general understanding of anthropological information on the subject matter. Weekly consultation among other researchers was conducted to discuss and clarify some information gathered during the literature search. Data collection phase The first community visit was done on April 2000.The midwife from the community was the assigned point person by the Rural Health Unit of Besao. The researcher was asked to stay in the health center. The first few days was spent in socialization among mothers. The researcher was asked to assist in community activities including cooking for the feeding program, meetings and weighing of children. As part of the community familiarization, the researcher explored the area with help from barangay health workers. Informal discussion with some community members was also part of Page 7 the familiarization. Every afternoon, the researcher walked around the community and talked with the children to learn the language. A meeting with Barangay Captain Dondie Babake was held to clarify the process of the study. The primary methods used were individual interviews and focus group discussion. For the healers, home visitations and interviews were the methods applied. The visits took place during the evenings as most of the healers were already at home from the whole day work. During each interview, the healer was asked about her/his method of healing, diseases he/she can cure, how he /she acquired the power to heal, his/her personal profile including origin, family, worldview. The researcher was able to observe actual procedures in treating the patients. In one occasion, the researcher was the patient regarding an eye problem. With this experience, the researcher was able to closely observe the methods of the healer while performing her task. Current and previous patients of some healers were also interviewed. Focus group discussion and semi-structured interview were the methods conducted for the mothers. There were 3 focus group discussions and 4 semi structured interviews conducted. Most of the time, the interview took place at the health center where many mothers attended the activities like feeding, adult literacy, food demonstration and regular weighing. The mothers were asked about their concepts of health, diseases and first –aid management including herbal plants that they used. Semi- structured interview and informal discussion among young people was also applied to validate the information and to further generate data regarding the subject matter. Participant observation method was used in observing the daily life in the community. Page 8 REVIEW OF LITERATURE THE CORDILLERA PEOPLES Prof Fred Eggan (1935) noted that there were ten ethnic groups in the Cordillera mountain range. He further divided the Cordillera people into the northern and eastern groups which were composed of the Northern Isneg or Apayao, Southern Isneg, Kalinga, Tingian, and Gaddang; and the southern and western groups composed of the Bontoc, Lepanto, North and South Kankana-ey, Ifugao and Ibaloi. Mountain Province One of the provinces in the Cordillera region is the Mountain Province. It has ten municipalities namely, Bontoc, Sagada, Besao, Tadian, Sadangan, Sabangan, Bauko, Barlig, Natonin and Paracelis. Bontoc is the capital municipality of the province. Mountain Province is bounded on the west by the provinces of Abra and Ilocos Sur, on the east by Isabela, on the south by Benguet and Ifugao and on the north by Kalinga. Along its borders are the high peaks of Mt Sipitan, Mt Amuyao, Mt Data, Mt Patoc and Mt Camingingel. Mountain Province has two seasons: the rainy season from April to September and the dry season from October to March. March to April is the warmest period, while December is the coldest period with temperatures occasionally reaching freezing point. Based on the 1990 NSCO census, Mt Province had an estimated population of 158,311. Igorot is the generic term used to refer to the inhabitants of Mountain Province and to the language. Physical description of Besao Besao, our study site, is in the western part of Mountain Province. It is bounded on the west by Quirino (Ilocos Sur), on the north by Tubo (Abra), on the east by Sagada and on the south by Tadian. Besao is 28 km from Bontoc and 164 km north of Baguio. It is reached from Baguio via Halsema Highway also known as “ Mountain Trail”. Besao has a mountainous terrain and is around 1,400 meters above sea level (ASL).

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